PENNSYLVANIA — Decedent Ernest Schrader alleged that he developed mesothelioma from exposure to asbestos from dozens of products during 40 years of working in a DuPont facility in Delaware. Pipe manufacturer Ameron International Corporation was the lone defendant at a two week trial in state court in Philadelphia. Earlier this week, the jury determined that the decedent was exposed to asbestos from Ameron. However, the jury did not find that Ameron was negligent, evidently accepting evidence that the company complied with OSHA standards at the …
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U.S. Supreme Court Denies Certiorari for Appeal of Punitive Damages Award
MISSOURI — In the matter of Jeannette G. Poage vs. Crane Co., Docket No. 17-900, the Missouri Court of Appeals, Eastern District, Crane Co. affirmed, among other things, the lower’s court punitive damages award in favor of plaintiff. Crane Co. appealed to the Supreme Court, requesting the high court address two key issues: (1) Whether the due process clause requires appellate review that considers factors undermining the reasonableness of the punitive damages award; and (2) whether the due process clause prohibits a punitive damages …
Continue ReadingAsbestos Claims Related to Operations Ceasing Prior to Coverage Dates of Insurance Policy Deplete Aggregate Limits
The Walter E. Campbell Company (WECCO) was a company that handled, sold, installed, and removed insulation materials containing asbestos. Since the mid-80s, WECCO was subjected to numerous lawsuits from individuals alleging damages due to asbestos exposure. WECCO is now defunct.
Although many claims against WECCO remained pending, its insurers contended that they were no longer contractually obligated to defend or indemnify WECCO because their aggregate limits had been exhausted. WECCO responded by arguing that the insurers improperly allocated operations claims as completed operations claims. Unlike …
Continue ReadingLouisiana Statute of Limitations Bars Wrongful Death Claim Filed in Delaware
DELAWARE — The plaintiff, Sandra Kivell, filed a wrongful death and survival claim alleging her husband’s death was caused by mesothelioma. He passed on September 5, 2015, and the new claims were filed on September 30, 2016. The plaintiff’s decedent had originally filed a complaint before his death. Georgia-Pacific filed a motion for judgment on the pleadings, arguing that the claims were filed beyond Louisiana’s one year statute of limitations for wrongful death and survival claims. The plaintiff did not contend that the Louisiana statute …
Continue ReadingCourt Finds Jurisdictional Discovery Relevant to Specific Jurisdiction Inquiry
LOUISIANA — In this case, the plaintiff filed suit in the Civil District Court for the Parish of Orleans, State of Louisiana, alleging the Decedent William Leech was diagnosed with mesothelioma on January 11, 2016 and passed away on January 14, 2016. The plaintiff further alleges the decedent was a construction engineer who worked with and was exposed to asbestos at numerous job sites in Louisiana, California, Arizona, Virginia, and other states from approximately 1965 through 1992, including the Morton Salty facility in Weeks Island, …
Continue ReadingNew York First Department, Appellate Division, Affirms NYCAL CMO
New York — On June 20, 2017, former NYCAL Justice Peter Moulton issued a new case management order (New CMO) in NYCAL and an accompanying decision with respect to same. The NYCAL defendants did not consent to the New CMO. ACT’s prior post on the New CMO is available here. NYCAL defendants subsequently appealed.
On March 22, 2018, the Appellate Division, First Department, determined that the New CMO did not do not deprive defendants of due process and Justice Moulton, pursuant to certain court …
Continue ReadingDistrict Court Denies Sheldon Silver’s Motion to Dismiss Following Remand
NEW YORK — The saga of former New York Assemblyman Sheldon Silver continues as the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York denied Silver’s Motion to Dismiss charges against him. Among other contentions, the government’s indictment against Silver includes allegations that Silver received more than $3 million dollars in referral fees from the Weitz & Luxenberg firm for clients sent to it by Dr. Taub, a physician specializing in the treatment of mesothelioma. The indictment further alleges that Silver disbursed state funds …
Continue ReadingPlaintiff’s Age and Medical Condition Proper Criteria under Statute to Set Trial Preference
CALIFORNIA — The Foxes brought this action against several defendants for Ms. Fox’s development of lung cancer and asbestosis from alleged exposure to asbestos containing products from 1954-63. The plaintiffs moved for trial preference pursuant to Code 36 as Ms. Fox was 81 and suffered from declining health. Ms. Fox had also undergone chemotherapy, which had caused side effects according to the plaintiff’s attorney. Of the 18 defendants, only Metalclad Insulation and Sequoia Ventures opposed the motion.
The trial court denied the motion to set …
Continue ReadingAsbestos Cleanup Costs Covered Under Premise Pollution Liability Policy
MISSOURI — A federal district court in Missouri held that Illinois Union Insurance Company was obligated to defend and indemnify its insured, Sunflower Redevelopment, LLC, with regard to requests from a state environmental agency to investigate the possibility of contamination by asbestos and other pollutants at a site that Sunflower was remediating.
Sunflower and the U.S. Army were subject to a consent order from the Kansas Department of Health and Environment (KDHE) requiring them to remediate contamination at a former army ammunition plant. In compliance …
Continue ReadingPennsylvania Statute Authorized General Personal Jurisdiction if Foreign Corporation Registered in Pennsylvania
PENNSYLVANIA — The U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania held that the defendants were subject to general personal jurisdiction due to the consent provision in Pennsylvania’s long-arm statute. The facts are as follows: the plaintiff, Thomas Gorton, alleged he developed mesothelioma as a result of his work at various phone companies and from changing automobile brakes. None of the alleged exposure took place in Pennsylvania. The case was filed in state court and removed to federal court. Defendants Ford Motor Company, Pacific …
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